Washington -- San Bernardino County District Attorney Mike Ramos came out
Tuesday in defense of a California law at the center of an upcoming U.S.
Supreme Court case, describing the challenge to the statute banning the
slaughter of certain animals as a potential threat to state authority.

The law against selling, buying, butchering or even holding
non-ambulatory or "downer" animals was prompted by revelations that cows at
Chino's Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. had been beaten, shocked, dragged by
chains and rammed with a forklift by workers attempting to get them to stand
for slaughter.